Take a Walk on the Positive Side
Do we look at things as the glass half empty versus the glass half full?
Being pessimistic sometimes comes more naturally than being optimistic. It can be so easy to overlook all the blessings we have because we are so focused on what we don’t have, or what we need, or what should be. Pessimism robs hope, and it robs gratitude. While optimism keeps you hopeful and thankful. What keeps us from being thankful? A lot of times, it's the things we can’t change.
Here’s the how, that doesn’t come so easy…
If Jesus is in control, then I can’t be.
Having a positive, optimistic spirit is not always easy, especially during disappointment or hard times. It’s hard to be thankful when going through the thick of it, and we rarely recognized the fight is a spiritual one. If you have been there before, you know that it feels impossible to be optimistic. It doesn’t happen on our will. It is the help of the Holy Spirit that gives us both the desire and the will to do what pleases God. That includes the state of our spirit, and that's the hope we can hold on too.
I always ask myself how I can turn my focus back to Jesus. If Jesus is in control, then I can’t be. Many times we focus our energy/eyes on the problem and wear ourselves out trying to fix or change the thing. We give these things so much power, and it does nothing but stress, worry, or anger us more.
Yet, there is hope.
But when we turn to God and seek to nourish our spirit in Him, I bet we can agree that He can calm the craziest of storms. The little, big, or ugly storms, they are produce a cry for help. So instead of putting our energy into fixing or changing what seems impossible, we can instead be thankful. Because God is in control, and His timing is perfect. Because He has never abandoned us, and He is a sovereign God. A grateful heart can surrender all things to Him.